Medicine Girl
by crystalfox127
Summary: Gaara is being followed... Bad summary, but please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

A/N:

Crystal: Hey everyone! Ok, so this is my VERY FIRST story! EVER!

Gaara: Hurry up, or I'll kill you- glare-

Crystal: ...meanie. Anyway, I would really appreciate if you review-puppydog eyes- Pwease?

Gaara: Crystalfox127 does not own Naruto, otherwise Orochimaru would be a giant bunny that poops rainbows.

Crystal: Is not! But...yeah...

"What are you doing? Did you really think I couldn't feel your presence?" the redhead growled as he looked at a bush. "I'm sorry..." a small voice came from the bush along with a rustling sound. A young girl came out of the bush with twigs and branches stuck in her coppery hair. She gave him an apologetic look.

"Why did you follow me?" the boy's voice was cold and emotionless, his cold gaze sent shivers down her spine. "A few days ago...well, when I saw you... You looked like you were in pain and you were clutching your head. I'm not sure why, but... I don't like seeing people in pain and you're no exception. I asked around about you, but a few people told me these nasty rumors about you, others didn't know who I was talking about. I couldn't find an answer from anyone as to why you were in pain, but I still made this... it's a medical balm that eases pain. I don't know if it will help, but I needed to try. I-I hope it will make the pain go away." She held the small green container out to him. "If you ever need anymore you can just ask and I'll make it for you." She offered him a tiny, shy smile.

"Why would you do such a thing for a monster? Maybe it's a poison to try and kill me." he replied while narrowing his eyes at her. He prepared his sand, ready to kill the stupid girl. "It's not! It's not a poison, I promise! I'll even prove it to you!" She unscrewed the cap and took some of the white cream onto her fingertips, then she rubbed some of it on her forehead. "See? It's not a poison... I just wanted to help." She let her gaze drop to the floor. "Please... Take it? I worked and did research on this the whole past week, I worked really hard on this." She once again held the container out to him, eyes still glued to the floor.

To say that Gaara was shocked was an understatement. 'If it does work I might have some relief from the pain.' He looked at the bottle once more before nodding at the blue-eyed girl. He took the container from her hands and put some of the cream on his forehead. He was pleased to find the cream did its job and that it took effect quickly, easing the semi-constant headache almost immediately.

"Thank-you!" Gaara looked at the girl curiously. Why did she thank him? She smiled brightly at him. "So... does it help?" She asked. He gave her a slight nod and she beamed at him. "I'm glad it helps! If you need any more of it you should let me know and I'll make you some more." she said happily.

'Hn, maybe I'll keep her alive a little longer. I could get some more of this cream for the headaches.' He thought to himself. "What's your name?" he asked. She smiled at him. "My name's Amaya. I'm a volunteer at the Konoha hospital, so you can usually find me there. What's your name?... I kinda just described your looks to people when I asked about you."she told him with a sheepish smile. He nodded at her. "Gaara...of the Dessert" he said as he disappeared in a swirl of sand.

" Gaara..." she tested the name on her tongue. She smiled and blushed slightly before giggling. "Gaara... What a nice name. It really suits him... a cool name for a cool guy. I hope I get to see him again..." She trailed off as she slowly started walking back to the village, completely unaware that in the trees, a certain redhead was watching her...


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, I decided to continue with this story as well, since a few people asked me to. Everyone that reviewed my previous chapter, thank you so much!

I don't own naruto

* * *

" Amaya?" "Hmm?" She turned to face the nurse that had called her. "Did you need something Aki-sempai?" the woman, Aki, looked at her with a smile. "Yes, there's a someone here to see you, a boy with red hair. Do you know him?" Amaya felt her face heat up as a crimson blush blossomed on her cheeks. "Yeah, I know him. His name is Gaara." Two seconds later she found herself being crushed in one of Aki's hugs. "Aww! So cute, so cute! I could just hug the life out of you!" Aki cried with anime river tears streaming down her face. After a few seconds of awkward silence...click! "W-what? No, sempai, its not like that! He's a friend of mine!" Amaya said in distress as the blush on her face darkened. She heaved a sigh of annoyance as Aki cackled like a madman -err, woman. Amaya huffed at her sempai's antics, but started laughing along too. After all, she could only imagine how red she must have been. After a few more minutes of insane laughter Amaya made her way to the hospital's reception. She was greeted with the familiar red hair of her favorite sand shinobi. "Hello Gaara-san." she greeted in a quiet, but friendly manner. He didn't reply to her greeting, she knew he wouldn't, but simply nodded in acknowledgement. "So, why are you here? Are you out of cream already?" He only nodded once again. She smiled at him. "I'll go get some more. I have a bunch of them at my home, so I'll get it when I'm done here at the hospital, okay?" He didn't say anything, but narrowed his eyes at her. He obviously wanted it immediately. "Actually, Amaya-chan, I'll be covering you for the rest of the day, so you'll be free to spend time with Gaara-san!" Aki chorped from behind her. Gaara looked at the brunette as she whipped around in surprise. "Aki-sempai, do you mean it? Can I really go?" Amaya's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "Yes, now run along. I have to go check on the patients!" Aki grinned and winked at Amaya and Amaya simply smiled brightly. "Let's go, Gaara-san!" She took a hold of his wrist, and before he could even think of killing her, she was dragging him through the streets of Konoha at a pretty impressive speed for a girl as small as her. Once they reached her house she opened the door and kindly invited Gaara inside. "Would you like something to drink? Or perhaps something to drink?" she asked as she led him to the small, cream-colored kitchen. The whole house had a cozy feel to it, even if it was rather small. "Some tea...would be nice..." he answered uncertainly. He wasn't exactly famous for having manners and he didn't want to scare this girl off, that special cream she made had given him a headache-free week. He didn't want to scare her off or kill her, not just yet. Not when she was giving him something to keep the pain away, not while she was still worth something to him. She smiled at the red-haired boy. "Sure! Some tea coming right up!" she said as she started preparing tea for Gaara and herself. Gaara took a seat at the dining table, not really sure of what else to do. The entire house, he noted, smelled of apples and strawberries. It was a bit of an odd combination to him, but not unpleasant. The small was somewhat welcoming, comforting even. He decided that he would ask her what smelled like that sometime, but for that moment he simply sat quietly at the table, watching the girl. "Where are your parents?" he asked, surprising himself with the question, but not showing it. "My dad's away in the Land of the waves, doing some business to help get the people there back on their feet." she told him. She seemed to have directly avoided the topic of her mother and Gaara decided not to pry -it's not like cared about her anyway. She was just giving him a way to get rid of the pain...she was a medicine girl, nothing else, nothing more. "Okay, the tea's ready!" she said as she gently put the tray down on the table and sat down on the opposite side of Gaara. Gaara took the tea cup in his hands and took a small sip. He was surprised at how nice it tasted, but didn't make any comments. Amaya felt nervous with him here. She hoped he didn't notice the way her hands were shaking with excitement. To Amaya, the red-haired boy was an enigma. Quiet, cold, distant...she wasn't sure why he was that way, but she did know that he couldn't be that way without having experienced some hardships in life. He was a puzzle and she, being the ever curios girl she was, wanted to solve him. She wanted him to open up to her, to trust her. She wanted to hear all of his stories, maybe even share a few of her own. She wanted to be a friend to him and though she didn't expect him to be one to her, she still allowed herself to hope. She quickly stood up and left the kitchen and Gaara was going to follow her, but she appeared a few short seconds later with a small green container. "Could I have the old container back, please? Then I won't have to keep buying new ones." she said as she held the container out to him, almost like last time. He simply took the empty container from his kunai pouch and handed it to her, then he took the cream from her, unscrewed the cap and held it out towards her. Amaya looked at the cream in confusion, before it donned on her. Last time she had tried out some of it to prove there wasn't any type of poison in it. She quickly took some of the cream on her fingertips before rubbing it on her forehead. Once Gaara was satisfied, he also put some cream on his forehead, feeling grateful for relief from the pain. They sat together in the kitchen in absolute silence and it was killing Amaya. She didn't like silence, it sounded too empty, too dead, to her. In her opinion, silence was to be saved for funerals, any other time there should be some noise. "Umm...so, Gaara? Uh...what's Suna like?" she tried desperately to break the silence. "Its very hot." he said simply and Amaya had the urge to sweatdrop, facepalm and laugh all at the same time. "Oh, okay." she said, trying not to sigh at her failed attempt at a conversation. "There's also a lot of sand. Its very dry in the desert and there's almost no rain. Sunagakure is dull, colorless." he said while staring at his tea cup with a blank expression. Amaya was surprised - that was the most that she'd heard him talk in one go. She felt a bit happy that he was talking to her. Sure, it was just about his village, but it was a start. Gaara decided to leave a few minutes later. There were dark clouds in the sky and he didn't want to get caught in the rain. That wouldn't wok well with his sand armor. Amaya stared after him as he walked off. A smile burst onto her face as she closed the door and disappeared back into the house.

* * *

Thanks for reading, please review!


	3. Chapter 3

Amaya had lay awake for a good portion of the night, every night, after inviting him over. And that was a week ago. She'd seen him again, to give him more of the cream. She still couldn't sleep, she just thought about him.

"Hey hey! Asleep on your feet? Not a good thing!" Aki's voice drew Amaya out of her exhaustion-induced trance. "Sorri, Aki-senpai! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to fall asleep! I-" "It's alright, it's alright. But what's been keeping you up at night? You're usually such a sound sleeper. And even with little sleep, you've always managed to stay awake and perform your tasks like normal, but the whole day today's just been a mess. Is something wrong, Amaya?" Aki asked, looking at the younger girl. "I...I've just been thinking a lot, I guess. No matter how tired I felt, sleep was just impossible for some reason." And I kept thinking about Gaara, she wanted to say, but kept her mouth shut about it. "Hmm...don't break your head over whatever it is that you're thinking of. Everything is going to be fine. Until you're back to normal,though, I'm giving you a break. You are a volunteer, so it shouldn't matter too much, but I think a few of the patients might miss you a bit... Oh, well. Your health comes first, so don't come back until

you're getting some decent sleep at night again." Amaya was about to protest, but Aki was already shoving her through all the corridors in the hospital and out the front door. "Get better!" Aki said with a wave of her hand as she walked back into the building. Amaya stood there, not sure what to do or where to go. She decided to go home. Maybe she could think of something to do.

The house was always dark. She only ever turned the lights on when she had company, which was also quite a rare occurrence. She walked into the house, the sun had already set, leaving her in complete and utter darkness. She didn't need to see where everything was, she already knew.

She always knew.

She walked through the hall, well aware of where the walls and doors were. She passed two doors and entered the third, into her bedroom. She fell down onto her bed and willed herself to go to sleep, but sleep didn't come.

Four hours later she's still awake. 'This is so ridiculous.' Amaya thought, sitting up on her bed. She went down the hall and into the bathroom. She opened the medicine cabinet and searched through it until she felt the strange shape of the container she was looking for. 'Sleeping pills. It's come to this?' she thought as she opened the small container and took out two blue pills. She hesitated, but then pulled out two more. 'If I die, it'll at least be in my sleep.'

She was about to swallow them when the feeling around her shifted. There was something, or actually someone, behind her and since she wasn't a ninja, she wouldn't be able to defend herself. "What are those? In your hand?" a hoarse voice asked from behind her. It was too dark for her to even see and inch in front of her, but she knew that voice. "Gaara-san. What... Why are you here? Is there something you need?" she asked, trying to slow down her heart. She felt him shift, she guessed he was holding his hand out. In his hand, she knew, would be a small, green container. An empty container. "More medicine, huh?" she asked as she led the way to the kitchen, where all her creams and ointments were kept in a pantry. She took out one of the containers and handed it to him, taking the empty one from him as well. She felt the pills between her fingers. "What are those?" she heard the boy ask. "Pills. Sleeping pills...VERY strong sleeping pills." she said and raised the hand a bit for the boy to see. Gaara wasn't unfamiliar to sleeping pills, though. He had tried to swallow them before, to try and find some peace and sleep, but they didn't work. Instead he got a lecture by some nuisance on the dangers of overdosing and such. Needless to say, that person was never heard from again.

"Isn't that too much?" he asks. Amaya looks at the pills. "Probably, but I don't care. I'm too tired to care." Amaya said with a frown. She tried to lift the pills up to her mouth, but her hand was held back by something coarse that was wrapped around her wrist.

It was sand.

Gaara's sand.


	4. Chapter 4

Medicine girl

**Finally! I got some inspiration on how to continue this! I think it's a good chapter, but that's up to you to decide. Please let me know what you thought of this story! **

Amaya stared at the sand around her wrist. A few locks of her coppery hair fell in front of her eyes. The coarse sand slowly started to slither towards her closed hand. It slithered past her pale fingers and gently pushed her balled fist open until the pills lay innocently in the palm of her hand. Gaara took a few steps closer to her and Amaya was overcome with fear. She wanted so badly to run away for some reason, but she didn't. She stood still as stone as the redhead slowly approached her. He lifted his hand and carefully grabbed the pills before allowing the sand around her hand to slowly return to his gourd.

Amaya glared at him tiredly. "Gaara, please? I'm tired, just…just let me sleep." She sighed as she tried to walk back to her room, stopping at the door with her back facing him. "Why are you so desperate to sleep?" he asked her, sounding truly curious. "Because if I'm awake, I think about y- stuff." Amaya felt some heat rise to her cheeks. Even exhaustion didn't stop her stupid blush from appearing, it seemed. "Is this…stuff…really something that bothers you so much?" Gaara asked as he continued to look at the pills in his hand. "I guess so… it's just, well…it's a person." Amaya said. Gaara looked toward her. "A person?" he asked, only for Amaya to nod in response. "Is it a person that you hate?" Amaya's head snapped towards the boy, eyes wide. "N-No! It's just… I really like this person, but at the same time there are things that make me wonder about what's really going on in his head. I guess I fear for him, I feel like he might hurt himself and that's something I don't want to happen. That fear… I think that's what keeps me up at night. I want him to be safe, but I can't do anything for him. It's painful to know that someone that I consider to be my friend might get hurt or killed. I know he's a good person… he just needs to see the light."

Amaya was positive that she was as red as a tomato by now. There was only silence. She slowly turned around to face Gaara, only to see him staring at her. "Is this person a ninja?" he asked her as his eyes returned to the pills in his hand. Amaya glanced at the Suna forehead protector that hung on the leather band that Gaara used to carry his gourd. "Yes, he is. He's also taking part in the chunin exams." she replied, never taking her eyes of the metal plate with the hourglass symbol. "Then you should stop worrying…and accept that as a shinobi, he will most likely die soon. There is no use worrying over something like death when death is inevitable. Everyone dies…" Gaara said calmly as a maniacal grin spread over his lips. "…some just sooner than others."

Amaya felt a lump form in her throat when he said that. It was true – tomorrow the participants that passed the first part of the chunin exam would all participate in the second exam. They were going to have to survive against not only Mother Nature and all her cruel ways, but each other as well. There was no doubt in her mind that a lot of blood would be spilled in that forest, but the thought of Gaara dying…. Amaya shuddered at the thought. "But I don't want him to die…"she clenched her fists at the mental image of Gaara getting killed, a single kunai piercing his heart and splattering blood all over the grass and against the side of a tree. Chills travelled up and down her spine, causing her to shiver violently. It was an image she never wanted to see again, especially not in real life.

"He will die. You cannot stop it. It will happen." Another whisper of sand scraping on the blue kitchen tiles and the boy was gone just as suddenly as he came. Amaya shivered once more as the image of a dying Gaara slipped back into her mind. "I really don't want you to die Gaara… Please be careful tomorrow." She walked back to her dark room and collapsed on her bed. She was sure she wouldn't get any sleep tonight. Maybe not ever again. Not with images of Gaara getting killed haunting her mind. Amaya sighed as she lied motionless in her bed, simply staring into the darkness. It was definitely going to be a very, VERY long night.


	5. Chapter 5

Medicine girl

**So, the next chapter of Medicine girl... I am not really sure if this chapter came out as good as I had wanted. Please drop a review if you can. This one is less dark than the last chapter. A lot less dark…wait, what? *reads previous sentence* That makes no sense… oh well.**

**Dear FromTheNight, thank you very much for your amazing review. I'm glad you like the story so far. and thanks for telling me about the mistake made in chapter one. I always mix them up and write the wrong one. This chapter is especially dedicated to you!**

**I do NOT own Naruto! I wish I did, but not all wishes come true. *le sigh***

Amaya yawned as she sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes. She suddenly froze and looked around. She was wrapped up in the blankets and there was a tiny wet spot on her pillow, indicating that she had drooled in her sleep. When had she fallen asleep? There was a light pain in the side of her neck, right over a pressure point that could knock a person unconscious. She didn't remember anything about someone being in her house, except Gaara, but he had left before she went to her room. Whoever it was obviously knew she was tired. Maybe Aki did it?

She sighed lightly as she lied back down and stretched her entire body. At least she finally managed to get some sleep. She felt so much better after a night of good sleep. Her eyes drifted to the electronic alarm clock and nearly popped out of their sockets when she realised what time it was. 'How the hell did I manage to sleep until two in the afternoon?' she thought as she jumped out of her bed and ran into the bathroom at an incredible speed. She quickly started brushing her teeth while opening the tap of the shower so the water could warm up.

After she finished brushing her teeth she undressed and hopped into the shower, working quickly to scrub all the sweat from her body. She quickly washed her oily hair before closing the tap, getting out and wrapping a soft pink towel around her body. She wasn't sure why she was in such a rush, but she was. She didn't want to sit here in her dark home the whole week, knowing that Gaara was in the Forest of Death, fighting for his life. If she stayed here she would start thinking too much again.

She made her way over to the wooden dresser that she kept in her room. She dug around in the drawers, looking for some comfy, casual clothes to wear. She pulled on her underwear, followed by some light grey shorts and a loose-fitting, navy blue tank top. She also pulled on some simple black sandals. She hastily made her way to the kitchen and grabbed the empty basket on the counter before heading for the front door. She felt better, yes, but that didn't mean that all the fear was gone now. She was afraid that something might happen to redheaded Suna shinobi.

She had always been the type to fuss over people's health and safety. It was natural that she would worry about Gaara, it was in her nature. Or at least so she told herself, but she knew that wasn't the case with Gaara. There was just something about him that made him special to her. She obviously had a crush on him, but she wasn't completely sure if that was what caused her to go out of her way just to help him. There was just something about him, something hidden in his eyes.

The air outside was hot and humid, nothing at all like the cold, stuffy air inside her house. It was a welcome change after spending days in her apartment. The sun was warm and there were very few clouds in the air. She decided to walk to the market. She was running low on a few groceries and ingredients that Aki either couldn't find or forgot. She didn't mind doing the groceries herself and it wasn't as if she couldn't blame Aki either. The older woman had already been extremely kind to her by offering to do all her shopping. How could she be mad at her for forgetting one or two things?

Amaya smiled at a few people as she passed them on the busy streets. Her hair was still a bit damp from her shower earlier and stuck to her neck and cheeks. She raked a hand through her damp locks to push it out of her face. A few people waved at her, some even stopped to have a quick chat with her. It made her feel happy. Suddenly, it was as if she was seeing the world around her for the first time, like waking up to the bright sunlight after a bad dream. It was an odd feeling, but not at all unpleasant. She welcomed it with open arms and a big smile. It was nice to feel _alive_ again.

Her mind was buzzing with happiness as she continued towards the market area, happily greeting various people on the way there. The market was busy with people moving everywhere. A few of the merchants smiled and waved her over to look at their wares. She greeted them all with a smile as she inspected and asked about some of the things they were selling. She continued walking through the ocean of people and she had to twist and turn to avoid them. Everyone was cheerful today. In the distance she could hear the sound of people singing and clapping. She made her way over to the crowd of cheerful people only to find a bunch of street performers, musicians, playing cheerful melody. The cheerfulness seemed infectious as a bunch of people were dancing to the song right there in the middle of the street.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to find a dark-haired boy looking at her. He held his hand out to her, silently asking for a dance. She placed the still-empty basket on the ground and grabbed the boy's hand, allowing herself to be dragged to the middle of the 'dance floor'. The boy placed his left hand gently on her waist while she placed her right one on his shoulder. Her left hand slipped into his right as they started to twist and twirl to the lovely melody. She let a giggle slip past her lips as she and the boy continued to dance. He twirled her around twice before placing his hand back on her waist. Their feet moved together in quick, light steps as they danced around on the street. The people in the crowd were cheering them on as they continued to dance faster and faster. Other couples had joined them in dancing to the quickening tune. The boy twirled her once more before dipping her slowly. She laughed happily as her brought her back up before bowing like a gentleman and letting go of her hands. "Thank you very much for the dance." she said as she waved at the boy and walked back to the woven basket that she had abandoned on the ground. She grabbed it and made her way to the various stands once again, the cheerful tune spilling from her mouth as she browsed through all the fruits, vegetables and everything else with a smile.


End file.
